LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan will contest all 33 seats in the by-elections to the National Assembly on March 16, the party has announced, a first in the country’s history. Run for a large number of seats.
At a press conference on Sunday after the party’s core committee in Lahore, PTI vice-chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi said, “Imran Khan will be the PTI candidate from all the constituencies [up for grabs] and Our [former] MNAs, who were earlier. Candidates selected for these seats will be covering.
The move will increase pressure on the ruling coalition as if the PTI chief succeeds in securing a majority, it could reduce the government’s popularity and make the Khan-led party lose ground in the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa elections. An advantage can be gained. place in the next three months.
The government is facing severe public criticism as inflation is at record highs and there is no respite in sight, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) program is also at a standstill.
The National Assembly seats fell vacant earlier this month when NA Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf accepted the resignations of PTI lawmakers and Awami Muslim League chief Sheikh Rasheed.
The PTI resigned en masse after Imran Khan was sacked as prime minister in April last year, but only 11 resignations were accepted in July. Later, as the party tried to make a comeback in the House, the Speaker started accepting their resignations – and within days, he accepted 113 more resignations, including 33.
In October last year, the former prime minister also set a record when he won six NA seats for the PTI in a by-election that was a direct contest between the former ruling party and the current ruling alliance of PDM parties. was seen as Also occupied two seats.
PTI will remain in the political arena and get the support of the people. When the people got their chance in July last year, despite our opponents being in government, they secured our mandate and gave victory to Imran Khan,” Qureshi said.
On March 16, the nation will give a clear message that the nation has complete faith in Imran Khan’s leadership and stands with PTI. The people will also express their reservations against this group which has been imposed on us.
Expressing concern over the “delay” in the Punjab and KP elections, the PTI vice-chairman said the governors of the two provinces would be violating the constitution if they did not release the election dates.
“The constitution does not allow an hour’s delay and we will not tolerate it. Elections should be ensured within 90 days as per the constitution.
The former foreign minister said that the ruling coalition at the Center was “terrified” of holding elections in both provinces. Political engineering is being done through the by-elections of the National Assembly.
The majority of experts say that there is no scope in the constitution to allow the government to delay elections except in emergency situations, but former secretary of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Kanwar Dilshad has a different opinion.
Dilshad has said that the governor has the power to provide the date of elections to the ECP – and both Punjab and KP top officials are yet to do so. He also said that it would not be a violation of the Constitution if the governors did not provide the date.
Meanwhile, PTI has expressed concern over Federal Law Minister Nazir Tarar’s statement of continuing the interim government and said that elections will have to be held within 90 days after the dissolution of the legislature.
A day ago, the Law Minister said that in exceptional circumstances, the caretaker government can stay beyond the stipulated period.
A meeting of the PTI Core Committee was held under the chairmanship of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in which several resolutions were passed.
One of the resolutions reads: “The PTI leadership (Core Committee and Parliamentary Party) today [Sunday] drew the attention of the judiciary and the nation to the irrefutable fact that the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan clearly states That elections will be held after the dissolution of the legislature, not a day later but within 90 days.
“Absolutely no reason can be used to delay the elections even by an hour. The PTI voluntarily dissolved its two provincial assemblies where it was in government according to the constitution. Any delay for any reason would be violative of the Constitution and subject to Article 6 of the Constitution.
In another resolution, the PTI leadership drew the attention of the President of Pakistan and the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces to the statement of the Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that “date of KP Assembly elections will be given by agencies and establishments”.
The PTI demanded the President to take notice of the “increasing interference of intelligence agencies and other sections of the establishment in the political arena”.
The resolution added: “Furthermore, he [the President] should take note of the FIRs, abductions, custodial torture and threatening phone calls against PTI workers and leaders, who are these black sheep in state institutions.” are being carried out.
This is discrediting our army which will lead to strengthening our external enemies and fifth columnists in Pakistan.
PTI urged the President not only to take notice of these abuses, constitutional violations and total destruction of all basic human rights, but against the “black sheep” repeatedly identified by the party leadership and the independent media. Ask for clarification immediately.
In another resolution, the party condemned the abduction and subsequent shameful FIR against Fawad Chaudhry on charges of treason, which led to his physical remand and terrorist-like treatment by the police. has been.
This is a flagrant violation of Article 14 of the Constitution and a complete violation of any semblance of law and justice. Physical remand three times in a single FIR is unprecedented. PTI demands the Chief Justice to take notice of this grave injustice. The core committee also expressed concern over the handling of the country’s economy by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government.
“The economy was performing very well as indicated in the Economic Survey of May 2022. Ever since the PDM government came into existence, through their mismanagement of the economy, they have given the people of Pakistan more than 50 years. It has hit the worst inflation, mass unemployment, and pushed the country very close to default, raising concerns for our national security.
